OCTOBER 2 — When we talk about agriculture, many people still imagine paddy fields, farms, hoes, and working under the hot sun. However, agriculture today has changed significantly. It is no longer simply about producing food. It is increasingly becoming a business sector that combines technology, innovation, marketing, and entrepreneurship.

The question is: should we continue to see farmers merely as agricultural producers? Or is it time to see them as agropreneurs—entrepreneurs who are capable of creating value from agricultural products?

This is the mindset that needs to be developed, particularly among the younger generation.

The agri-food sector offers significant opportunities for exploration. The Department of Agriculture, through the Young Agropreneur Programme, for example, focuses on encouraging youth participation in crop production, livestock, fisheries, agro-based industries, and marketing. The programme also provides support through incentives, financing, training, and technical advisory services.

However, assistance alone does not necessarily turn someone into a successful entrepreneur.

The real challenge begins after the project starts.

A young agropreneur needs to know more than how to grow chilli, cultivate vegetables, or raise livestock. They need to understand who their customers are, determine their actual production costs, set appropriate prices, build a brand, and ensure that their products continue to have market demand.

This is the difference between producing a product and creating value.

For example, selling fresh agricultural produce may generate a certain level of income. However, when the produce is processed, attractively packaged, branded, and marketed digitally, its economic value can increase significantly. In other words, opportunities in agropreneurship do not necessarily begin and end on the farm.

They can develop from the farm to a small processing facility, from the processing facility to digital platforms, and ultimately directly to consumers.

The challenge is more than capital

One of the issues commonly associated with agropreneurship is access to capital. Certainly, capital is important, but it is not the only concern.

Without management knowledge, capital can be quickly depleted. Without an effective marketing strategy, products may remain unsold. Without an understanding of customers, production may not match market demand. Without proper risk planning, changes in weather, input costs, and market prices can place significant pressure on the business.

Therefore, the development of agropreneurs should move beyond the approach of “providing assistance and starting a project” towards an approach of “building capabilities and building sustainable businesses.”

Training should also go beyond technical agricultural skills. Young agropreneurs need exposure to financial management, digital marketing, branding, e-commerce, market analysis, product innovation, and the use of data for decision-making.

Technology opens new doors

Technological development is creating even greater opportunities.

The use of drones, the Internet of Things (IoT), automation, smart farming systems, and artificial intelligence (AI) can help improve production efficiency and support data-driven decision-making.

However, technology should not be viewed merely as machinery or equipment.

Technology can also become a powerful marketing tool.

A young agropreneur today can build a customer community through TikTok, Instagram, or Facebook, receive orders online, share production processes through social media, and build consumer trust without relying entirely on intermediaries.

This is where the younger generation has an advantage. They are not only more familiar with digital technology but also have the potential to combine creativity, marketing, and entrepreneurship with agricultural knowledge.

Agriculture as a career, not a last resort

A greater challenge is changing perceptions of agriculture.

We should not encourage young people to enter agriculture simply because they have access to land or because government assistance is available. Instead, they need to see agriculture as a professional career and an opportunity to build a sustainable business.

Malaysia's Economic Census 2023 reported 71,112 youth-owned establishments in 2022, generating a gross output of RM80.7 billion. Although most were in the services sector, these figures demonstrate the potential of young people to become significant economic players when they engage in entrepreneurship.

The question is how some of this entrepreneurial energy can be channelled into the agri-food sector.

We need more young people who see a paddy field not merely as a place to grow rice, but as an opportunity to develop a business model. We need entrepreneurs who see agricultural produce not simply as commodities, but as raw materials for innovation.

From producers to value creators

The future of agropreneurship should not be measured only by the number of hectares cultivated or the tonnes of produce generated. We should also ask: How much value has been created? How many employment opportunities have been generated? How many new products have been developed? How large is the market that has been reached?

This is the paradigm shift that needs to take place.

The government, educational institutions, agricultural agencies, financial institutions, and private sector all have important roles to play. Universities, in particular, can play a greater role in developing knowledge-based agropreneurs through entrepreneurship education, innovation, research, and technology transfer.

Ultimately, we do not simply want to produce more people who farm. We want to produce more people who know how to produce, process, market, innovate, and create value.

Because the agropreneur of the future is not merely a farmer who uses technology. They are entrepreneurs who turn agriculture into a business, technology into an enabler, and innovation into a source of value.

* Dr Nur Yuhainis Ab Wahab is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Business Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia.

** This is the personal opinion of the writers or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.